I Got The Feeling

Yes, this post is a play on Sir James Brown’s epic ditty. Yeah, I said “ditty” and I Knighted James Brown today.  “Baby, Baby, Baaaaby.” Sometimes people don’t think that entrepreneurs need that extra kick when they get a feeling on something, as they are natural risk-takers. On the contrary – the more I work with entrepreneurs the more apparent it becomes that getting the ‘I got the feeling’ mojo needs to be followed up by pragmatic strategy with implementable tactics.

Too often excellent ideas are conjured but fall short of hitting the mark or driving revenue, due to a lack of follow-through.  Follow through is the number one thing that can change the arc of an organization. Conversely, there is no greater feeling than taking an esoteric idea and turning it into a tangible product or service that can move the needle.

First, you need to take incremental steps to reach that larger idea/goal. Map out exactly what it will take to get you to the end which you seek. If necessary, form strategic partnerships to help map out the parts that don’t fall into your area of expertise. Don’t be so arrogant as to prevent yourself from seeking help.  Also, go toward your goal in achievable and manageable increments. [Read more…]

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Do More Than ‘Net Work & Network

I love social media. I have met many wonderful people that have become colleagues, friends, associates, and partners. No matter how often we speak online through our various networks, the power of face-to-face old school networking is still very relevant.  I see some businesses trying to go the easy route by focusing too much on making the ‘net work that they forget to network.  More important, they forget (or were never taught) how to effectively network.

We hear about networking all the time. People often mistake it for something it is not, though. It is so omnipresent in the lexicon of America that the meaning has become watered down.  It is sort of like a brand name that has become a commodity. Some good examples are Kleenex, Jeep or Coke – even Sea-Doo suffers from this affliction.  Well, add networking to the pile of words/brands over-used creating meanings as eroded as the smooth water beaten pebbles on the beach. [Read more…]

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Good Things are Coming

Pass it OnPower of Positive ThinkingLast week, I was at the Mid America Truck Show.  I noticed a distinct difference in the general rhetoric I have recently heard from my cohorts in the transportation industry. The last couple of years have been arduous for anyone looking to increase their business. This is especially true in an industry that has seen a 40% decline in business. Yet, I was reminded of the optimism of this great country, because I heard almost everyone utter the sentiment that good things are coming  -in their own way.

In one instance, I heard a vendor being proud of the orders they’ve brought in to their business recently. The sentiment also came in the form of, “well the phones are ringing again, and that is a good thing.” The fact of the matter is, the positive attitude can be the first step in realizing tangible advancement. The spiritual principle that “your world reflects your thoughts” is very true and may be turning toward positive in the business community.

This Universal Law demonstrates how we create the things, events, and people that come into our lives. Our thoughts, feelings, words, and actions produce energies which, in turn, attract like energies. Negative energies attract negative energies and positive energies attract positive energies.

There is a great opportunity for us to shape our world, because we’re coming from a place where the canvas has to be re-drawn, completely. Holding fast and steady to our thoughts of growth will draw to us the resources necessary to make this reality possible and true. Good things are coming and are on their way. We just have to continue thinking that a great miracle will happen for our respective communities, and they will.

I like hearing stories of triumph. Do you have anything that you would like to tell the world about? Who knows, it may inspire the prosperous thoughts, and ultimately, actions of others.

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Free Marketing Help

Some people might not be comfortable enough to offer free solutions for the same services they charge for. Well, there is a reason; I understand that many small businesses are operating on a budget. If nothing, Hand-Raiser Marketing is about small business success, which sometimes conflicts with our own capitalist goals. Without further adieu, here are a list of companies that I don’t make a dime to promote, but I do because I like their offerings.

I like to use Survey Monkey for all survey “stuffs,” when I’m on expense control.

Map Stats can give you the lowdown on what demographics are in the markets you serve. If you’re looking to expand…

Microsoft offers a pretty comprehensive Budget Planning tool. It’s easy, just fill in the blanks!

Want to network online? Try LinkedIn to start growing your online professional network.

Email is still important, no matter how inefficient and SPAMMY. I use Mail Chimp when I want to design HTML emails, or manage not-so-large email lists.

That’s enough for now. So, get to it and start doing your messaging thing. It feels good to get the word out about how awesome your business is at doing what you do. Don’t forget to call me if you need some help, though. Nobody’s ever made it alone, regardless of what they tell you.

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Research

If you’re not sure what your current customers and prospects think of you, or just want to make some directional decisions and are unsure of which way to go, Hand-Raiser can work with you to develop surveys, questionnaires, and offer the data analysis to help you make those revelations and decisions.

Let’s face it, you might be too busy worrying about payroll, products, logistics, operations and navigating the ever-changing marketplace to worry about direction. Call us, we can help.

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